*

Case involves fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed

346

people

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Boeing ( BA ) had agreed to plead guilty during Biden

administration

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Judge said he had no authority to reject deal struck under

Trump

administration

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Families of some victims

of two Boeing 737 MAX plane crashes that killed 346

people asked a U.S. appeals court on Thursday to reverse a

judge's decision to approve the Justice Department's request to

dismiss a criminal case against the planemaker.

Judge Reed O'Connor, of U.S. District Court in Fort Worth,

Texas, last week approved the request by the Trump

administration's Justice Department, but harshly criticized the

government's decision.

He said he did not agree that dismissing the case, which

had been pursued under the Biden administration and initially

resulted in an admission of guilt, was in the public interest.

The families asked the 5th Circuit Court to reverse his

decision. They said the Justice Department violated their rights

as crime victims when it negotiated a deferred prosecution deal

with Boeing ( BA ) over a fraud charge stemming from false

representations the planemaker made to the Federal Aviation

Administration.

"We believe that the courts don't have to stand silently by

while an injustice is perpetrated," said Paul Cassell, a lawyer

for some of the families. "The charges against Boeing ( BA ) cannot

simply be dropped."

Boeing ( BA ) did not immediately respond to a request for comment

on Thursday. The Justice Department last week rejected the

judge's criticism and said it believed the deal was "the most

just outcome."

O'Connor said in 2023 that "Boeing's ( BA ) crime may properly be

considered the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history."

He said he had no authority to reject the government's

decision to make a deal with Boeing ( BA ), even though it "fails to

secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the

flying public."

Boeing ( BA ) last year had agreed to plead guilty to a criminal

fraud conspiracy charge after the fatal 737 MAX crashes in

Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019.

After U.S. President Donald Trump took office, the Justice

Department reversed course in May and dropped the demand for a

guilty plea.

Under the deal, Boeing ( BA ) agreed to pay an additional $444.5

million into a crash victims' fund to be divided evenly per

victim of the two fatal 737 MAX crashes, on top of a new $243.6

million fine and more than $455 million to strengthen the

company's compliance, safety, and quality programs.

In September, the FAA proposed fining Boeing ( BA ) $3.1 million

for a series of safety violations, including actions tied to a

January 2024 Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 mid-air emergency, and

for interfering with safety officials' independence.

Separately, a jury in Chicago on Wednesday ordered

Boeing ( BA ) to pay more than $28 million to the family of Shikha

Garg, a United Nations environmental worker who was killed in

the crash in Ethiopia. Under a deal between the parties, the

family will receive $35.85 million - the full verdict amount

plus 26% interest - and Boeing ( BA ) will not appeal.